Information and Links for Educators

Stop the Spread of Germs in Schools

• Approximately 1/5 of the U.S. population attends or works in schools. (U.S. Dept of Ed, 1999).
• Some viruses and bacteria can live from 20 minutes up to 2 hours or more on surfaces like cafeteria tables, doorknobs, and desks. (Ansari, 1988; Scott and Bloomfield, 1989)
• Nearly 22 million school days are lost annually due to the common cold alone. (CDC, 1996)
• Addressing the spread of germs in schools is essential to the health of our youth, our schools, and our nation.
• A study of 305 school children found that youngsters who washed their hands 4 times a day had 24% fewer sick days due to respiratory illness and 51% fewer days due to upset stomach (CDC)

Washing hands is Critical

The most important thing children can do to prevent illnesses is wash their hands. Studies have shown that schools and day care centers that emphasize handwashing significantly decrease illnesses and absences. Check these stats .

Curriculum Links

Do Bugs Need Drugs?
Materials and plans for preschool and second grade children about handwashing and the appropriate use of antibiotics.

Evolution and Antibiotic Resistance: PBS online lesson
Highschool lesson in which students learn why evolution is at the heart of a world health threat.

Excite = Excellence in Curriculum Integration through Teaching Epidemiology:
A collection of teaching materials developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to introduce students to public health and epidemiology.

Glo Germ
Lesson plans, worksheets, and products to teach hand washing for K-6.

Handwashing Curriculas and Student Project Ideas: from the Minnesota Department of Health
Four age appropriate hand washing lesson plans.

Henry the Hand
Hand washing awareness program for preschool and gradeschool children. Access and download ideas for curriculum, activities, experiments, and songs.

Its a snap-tool kit:
A Cross-Curricular, School-Wide, Hand Hygene Education Program for Middle Schools.

Lesson plans for K-6: from the Virginia Department of Health
These lesson plans address topics such as handwashing, germs, communicable diseases, and medications.

Save the Antibiotic: from the Arkansas Department of Health and Human Services
Downloadable lessons for middle school students which provide skills to differentiate between viruses and bacteria and realize appropriate treatment.

Virus Encounters: from the CDC
This free curriculum offers middle and high school school teachers a comprehensive set of multimedia aids and activities for teaching units on infectious disease topics.

Wash the Germs Away: from California's AWARE program
A 50 page curricula integrating volunteer student instructors at the high school, college, or university level to teach 3rd graders the basics about what germs are, proper handwashing, and proper antibiotics use.

Related Links for Educators

Cells Alive!
An great interactive and visual site for learning about cell biology, microbiology,immuology and more! Geared for middle school and high school students.

Disease Cards: from the CDC
This set of cards has photos and information about some of the infectious diseases that CDC studies. Students and teachers can view the set online OR download and print their own copy.

Harvey Catches a Cold
An interactive E-book for preschool children about a wombat that catches a cold. The message is that antibiotics are not necessary for the common cold.

Infection Detection Protection: from the American Museum of Natural History
An interactive E-magazine will help students, families and teachers understand what causes infectious disease and what they can do to help prevent it.

Its a SNAP: School Network for Absentee Prevention
Ideas and activities that foster simple, health-enhancing behaviors throughout the entire school community. Geared for teachers, school nurses, and aministrators of middle school students.

The Scrub Club
The goal of this site is to raise awareness about the benefits of handwashing and ultimately improve the health of children and reduce school sick days with games, songs, and downloads for teachers.